


Convulsing Queen of Beacon Hills

by skellington



Series: Headcanons That I Will Hold Onto Forever (Teen Wolf) [1]
Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Also there's VERY vague hinting at Scisaac, Anxious!Isaac, Diabetic!Boyd, Drabble, Epilepsy, Epileptic!Erica, Erica/Boyd is kinda lowkey, Hurt/Comfort, Like this isn't about their relationship, Pack Dynamics, because how could i not
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-08-07
Updated: 2015-08-07
Packaged: 2018-04-13 12:58:21
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,268
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4522992
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/skellington/pseuds/skellington
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>She still feels like a defect, sometimes, but Boyd's words resonate with her.</p>
<p>You are a queen. Violent convulsions or not, you are a force to be reckoned with. You are a storm.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Convulsing Queen of Beacon Hills

Erica has been carrying epilepsy with her since she was a child. Medications always failed, surgery was not an option, and her triggers were either unidentifiable, or everything under the sun.

She has Grand-Maul seizures on the daily, and absence seizures even more frequently.

And after sixteen years, she's come to peace with it. She has auras of auras, makes sure people clear a space for her if she falls, briefs them all on what to do if she has an episode - it's a routine, basic procedure by now.

But just because she's used to it, does not mean that the idea of it being removed from her life is _unappealing._

So she says yes, when Derek Hale asks if she wants it all to stop. She doesn't hesitate for a moment. She shouldn't trust this man - this man nearing his thirties that lingers high school hallways, this man that claims he has a cure for a neurological condition that has yet to be cured by science. But she does not miss a beat when he asks her if she wants to be cured by him.

What has she got to lose?

He bites her, and she changes, she feels the electricity of it all running through her body, and she feels _good._ Brand new. Lighter. A better version of herself.

Her eyes glow golden for forty seconds before she falls unconscious and seizes.

 

 

 

"You said it was supposed to _stop_ them."

"It was."

"Why isn't it working?"

"I don't know."

" _Derek,"_ Erica growls, flashing her eyes and baring her teeth, " _why isn't it working?"_

Agonized red meets desperate gold when he looks into her eyes. 

" _I don't know."_

 

 

 

She feels like a failed science experiment for her first three months as a wolf. The Bite was supposed to rid her of her problems. Now, they just feel amplified. She's glossed and beautiful and everything she ever wanted to be on the outside, but that means nothing when she floats to a new, unreachable level when she has an absence seizure in class. Her looks mean nothing when at the end of the day, she's still _Epileptic Erica._

She doesn't get it. Scott McCall was able to throw away his inhalers after he got Bitten. Isaac's anxiety only flares in the absolute _worst_ situations, or when he's reminded of his father. Boyd hasn't needed to check his blood sugar for _months._

 

It isn't _fair._

 

On her third full moon, she loses it completely. She has three seizures consecutively, her eyes can't stay focused on anything, her thoughts are cloudy and discombobulated. The left side of her face won't stop twitching. She's trying to stay conscious and control her inner wolf all at once and she just _can't do it._

Isaac and Boyd are in their shackles, claws out and fangs bared, but they've got a better hold on things. They're clinging to their anchors, and soon enough, they won't need this anymore. Not like she will.

Because epilepsy will _never_ go away. She's stuck with it, it's stuck to her, and she feels so _inadequate._ Like a letdown. Derek wanted a real pack, he wanted three real werewolves. Ones that are able to stay composed and in control. Erica can't be that third real werewolf for him.

She howls, long and loud. She doesn't care who can hear. She's tired of this. She struggles in her restraints, trying to cling to consciousness and an anchor. An aura comes over her.

She hopes this seizure knocks her out.

 

 

It does.

She wakes up the morning after that full moon with a cloud hanging over her head and Isaac and Boyd looming over her. They wear looks of concern, as they usually do after she comes to. Boyd has one of her hands in his, and her heart warms a little bit. Her hand is so tiny engulfed in his. She feels safe.

Isaac is running his fingers through her hair, and she feels the corners of her lips pull upwards into a small smile.

Her alpha isn't in the room, and she isn't stable enough to feel for him yet. She opens her mouth to ask where Derek is, but Isaac answers before she can get the words out.

"Derek went out to get you some water and a couple of those cupcakes you like." His speech is slowed down and firm, just like it has to be for her to understand anything when she comes to.

Erica nods in content and clears her throat.

"So, how bad was it?" She asks. Her voice is raspy and her throat hurts, trying to choke out the words.

" _Awful_ -"

"Bad. It was pretty bad," Boyd says, cutting Isaac off with a stern look.

Erica gulps and nods. Her eyes are welling up - why does this have to be so _hard?_

"How many, and how long?"

"Four. The longest was close to five minutes. Derek almost left to pick up an Epi-Pen."

"Great. Another training session ruined by Epileptic Erica," she says, a warm tear falling out of the corner of her eye. Boyd wipes it from her cheek and gives her a soft, sad smile.

"You know that's not how things are, Erica," he says.

She sits up, faster than any of them could blink.

"What do you mean? That's _exactly_ how things are. I can't keep my goddamn brain under control. I'm never going to be the beta Derek wants me to be. I'll never contribute like you and Isaac do. I'm just as useless as I was when I was a human." Her last words come out in a broken whisper and her tears are falling freely now.

Isaac retracts his hand from her hair and slowly moves to grab her jaw. His grip is firm, and he pulls her face towards himself.

"Look at me," he says. So she does.

"Erica, you're a phenomenal wolf. You have kicked my ass in more training sessions than I can count. You've outran Boyd by _miles._ You've made the most progress out of the three of us. Honestly? I'm pretty sure you're Derek's favorite." Erica snorts wetly. As if Derek plays favorites.

"You're pretty bad-ass, Reyes. Epileptic or not," Isaac concludes softly. He gives her a fond look and ruffles her hair.

"Thanks, Isaac," Erica says. There's a lingering sadness, but Isaac's words made her feel warm, loved.

"Of course. I think I'm going to head over to Scott's, now. To, you know. Uh. Do stuff. Important stuff."

Erica and Boyd share a knowing look as Isaac darts out of the house.

They sit in silence for a moment while Erica composes herself.

"Erica Reyes," Boyd says softly, "you are incredible."

She rolls her eyes. Boyd chuckles.

"I'm serious. Everything Isaac just said is 100% true. You're fierce. You're beautiful. You're dangerous."

He pauses, presses a kiss to the back of her palm.

"You are a queen. Violent convulsions or not, you are a force to be reckoned with. You are a storm."

Erica almost feels like crying again, but not out of sadness, not out of despair. Boyd's words sparked something inside of her. She feels like taking on the world.

 

"I am a queen. A convulsing one, but a queen nonetheless. Beacon Hills has no idea what's coming for them."

Boyd grins, and Erica lets out a loud, confident, belly-laugh.

 

 

The seizures don't go away. They never will.

But Erica knows, neurological disorder and all, she is the baddest thing to ever spawn from Beacon Hills. She is hell on high heels.

She is Erica Reyes, resident epileptic werewolf.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

**Author's Note:**

> So, basically, I have really strong feelings about Erica Reyes and her epilepsy. I was incredibly angry when her epilepsy dissipated with her change, because she was the only character with epilepsy that I've ever come across that I could empathize with so well. I did an epileptic bro-fist with her when she was first introduced. Having that part of her character torn from me really sucked.  
> Thus, this fic was born. I wrote it in one sitting. I'm sorry if it sucks.


End file.
